Results 20,021-20,040 of 26,608 for speaker:John McGuinness

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (21 Nov 2013)

John McGuinness: Should we not give Comptroller and Auditor General the information and documents that have been received by the committee, given that he has been able to receive and deal with similar documentation? It relates to a loss of revenue to the State. We are not investigating individual gardaí or the individuals who were given these points. We are investigating the loss of money to the...

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (21 Nov 2013)

John McGuinness: The Comptroller and Auditor General has a report before us that is based on the same issue. The information that has been given to the committee seems to be about the same issue. It is about the loss of revenue to the State, and it is about a system failure of some kind. Therefore, on foot of the Comptroller and Auditor General's report and because of the apparent nature of the documents...

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (21 Nov 2013)

John McGuinness: It will not be because we have decided to seek legal advice. That is only right and proper for the protection of the committee and its members.

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (21 Nov 2013)

John McGuinness: I will move on to individual correspondence. No. 3B.1 is correspondence dated 8 November 2013 from Bernie Lloyd, who is the PRO of the Davitt Road North and Windmill Hill residents' group regarding the Wexford courthouse project. It is to be noted. This correspondence is ongoing. It seems that different positions are being taken by different groups. We will forward this correspondence to...

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (21 Nov 2013)

John McGuinness: We will draft a reply in line with the opinion that has been expressed this morning. We will check it with the legal section and then issue a response.

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (21 Nov 2013)

John McGuinness: We will express robustly the opinion of members, check the remainder with the legal section and then issue the letter. Is that agreed? Agreed. Is it agreed that we will publish the report on bank stabilisation next week and extend the invitations to various people to discuss it? Agreed. I will deal with the next two items together: correspondence dated 19 November 2013 from Mr. Billy...

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (21 Nov 2013)

John McGuinness: I will ask the clerk to state the position.

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (21 Nov 2013)

John McGuinness: That was a decision of the Committee of Public Accounts. The reply that is being issued has been checked by the Parliamentary Legal Adviser.

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (21 Nov 2013)

John McGuinness: It was sent to the Chairman and I gave it to the Clerk immediately.

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (21 Nov 2013)

John McGuinness: It was agreed by the committee to send it to the Parliamentary Legal Adviser for legal advice. The whistleblower had come forward and asked to appear before the committee and supplied the information. The information needed to be checked by the legal advisers so that the committee could be protected.

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (21 Nov 2013)

John McGuinness: To make it clear, at the time that we received the documentation, it was made clear by the Committee of Public Accounts that we were only interested in the system failure and the loss of revenue to the State. That is all we are interested in. The committee is not interested in names or places. Arising from the Comptroller and Auditor General's report on the same type of issue, the...

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (21 Nov 2013)

John McGuinness: We are trying to strike a balance. We are having it examined in the context of the claim of the significant loss of money to the State and the breakdown in the system, while at the same time working in accordance with the data protection laws. I think we should not be stopped in the context of our examination of the information relevant to the systems failure and the loss of funds to the...

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (21 Nov 2013)

John McGuinness: I will try to clarify with the members the way we go forward from here. We received a letter which was received yesterday from the retired regulator of the credit unions offering to come before the committee because of the fact that some of these issues would have come up during the course of his time in office. Would it be acceptable to members to launch our report when it is finished and,...

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (21 Nov 2013)

John McGuinness: Yes, and the retired person who has offered to come in.

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (21 Nov 2013)

John McGuinness: No, not the regulator. The former registrar of credit unions.

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (21 Nov 2013)

John McGuinness: No. He just wrote to us. He wrote to us in relation to the Newbridge Credit Union issue.

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (21 Nov 2013)

John McGuinness: I do not have the letter with me but he mentioned the difficulties in credit unions that came to light during his term in office. He volunteered to come in. Perhaps, in the context of the examination of the bank stabilisation report, with the people we have identified as potential witnesses, we could include the person who wrote to us and the current holder of that office.

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (21 Nov 2013)

John McGuinness: We will deal with No. 1, the minutes of the meeting of 14 November 2013. Are the minutes agreed? Agreed. If there are no matters arising from the minutes, we will deal with correspondence. No. 3 is correspondence received since our meeting on Thursday, 14 November 2013. No. 3A is correspondence from Accounting Officers and-or Ministers. The correspondence from the Minister for Public...

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (21 Nov 2013)

John McGuinness: We will wait until we get to it. I will call the Deputy then. No. 3A.3 is correspondence from Mr. Tony O'Brien, director general of the HSE, regarding the internal audit report, section 80, agencies' remuneration, which is to be noted. This report was circulated to the committee last Thursday while the HSE officials were present dealing with the issue of medical cards. The issue of top-up...

Public Accounts Committee: Business of Committee (21 Nov 2013)

John McGuinness: I understand the report was given to the clerk just before the last meeting when the HSE was present dealing with the medical card issue.